Electric-radiant-heater structure



March 16 1926.

A. KEMPSTON ET AL ELECTRIC RADIANT HEATER STRUCTURE yFilmed sept. 8, 1925 OHG m uw@ mw JM Patented Mar. v16, 1926.

. NITE STATES oFFlc.

ARTHUR KMPSTON AND GEORGE`J'. HENRY, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, AS- SIG-NCRS T MAJESTIC ELECTRIC APPLIANCE CO., 0F SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFOR- NIA, A CORPORATION 0F CALIFORNIA.

Application sled september a, 1925. serial No. 54,911.

To all whom it may comer/n.:

Be it known that we, ARTHUR KEMrsToN and GEORGE J. HENRY, citizens of the United States, residing at San Francisco, county of San lFrancisco, State of California, have invented new and useful Im rovements in Electric-Radiant-Heater Struc ures, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention has for its object an elecio tric heater especially adapted to the heating of rooms by convection as well as by radiation, either by positioning the heater in the wall or mounting it as a. movable or stationary structure within the room.

A further object is a type of heater of the character described wherein elect-ric heating resistances are employed mounted upon a refractory plate member and a large number of circulation passages are provided through the said member and adjacent the heating coils through which air is circulated and heated by intimate contact with the resistance element and the heated passage Wa ls in the refractory member.

Another object is a heater of the character described with an air passage behind the refractory element and with a rear and forwardly 'directed diaphragm member forming one of the walls of said main passage and a plurality of openings or small passages through the `refractory member,

whereby the air flowingy upward through f the said main passage finds egress through a large number of relatively small passages in the'refractory member and is highlyheated during its travel.

A further object is a heaterof the character described wherefrom there are. discharged two distinct streams of heated air,v one of said streams from the central and front being more highly heated and the second stream acting as a layer or strata of flowing relatively cooler air between the hot or fro'nt stream and the wall or rear portion of the heater. After leaving the heater these streams mingle together conveying large quantities of heated air into the room.

A further object is an electric heater of the character described wherein a maximum dissemination of convection heat is attained.

Other objects will appear from the drawings and specifications which follow:

By referring -to the drawings our invention will be made clear:

Fig. 1 is a vertical cross section through one form of heater as mounted in a conventional wall and employing our invention, and is a cross section of Fig. 4 on the line I, I thereof.

Fig. 2 is a detailed cross section of a portion of the refractory member showing portions of the resistance or heating coils in place.

Fig. 3 is an alternate form of refractory member.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary front view of a. portion of our heater of Fig. 1 with the grille work removed and with the refractory member `and heating coils mounted thereon and showing the manner of assmbling unit blocks which may be built up to form a refractory member of any required dimensions. Fig. 5 is a section through Fig. 4 on the line V-V with the blocks removed to show the manner of tying together the supporting structure.

Fig. 6 is a perspective section of one of the blocks of which the refractory element 12 may be built up.

Throughout the figures similar numerals refer to identical parts.

Numeral 1-1-1 indicates conventionalwalls in which framing 2 2 has been introduced to receive a heatery employing our invention.

The heater here shown comprises a casing having a bottom 3, a rear portion 4, a forwardly extending top portion 5 and a grille or open work front G.

Within the casing are provided holding means as the channels 7, 8 in which the heat* ing ,element and its refractory member are gripped as by the cross bolts 9. 10.

The refractory base may with advantage be made upof a pluralityv of similar block members provided with ribs or dowels for interlocking in alignment as shown at 11, or with recesses for the cross connecting bolts 10 which bolts then serve as dowels for the alignment of the blocks; or the walls of the channels 7 S and may be depended upon for this ur ose de endin on the form of blocks spblerlted., p

Although we prefer to form the refractory element 12 of a plurality of such blocks as 13 the entire element may be molded `as a single structure-if preferred and one type of this latter form is shown in Fig-3.

To the rear of the refractory member is provided the diaphragm 14 spaced widely apart from the refractory element 12 atthe bottom, admitting `ain air passage 46 of considerable dimensions.

The upper portion of the diaphragm is bent over .or tapers to and is connected at with or may be molded solid with the refractory member 1,2 whereby the air passage 46 is closed at the top, constraining the air to flow through the 'small passages in the refractory member. y

Through the refractory element, whether built up of unit blocks as shown in Fig.' 6, or molded as a single structure, is provided a plurality of projecting r-ibs or shelves, several of which are shown at 15, 16, 17 respectively and with a similar plurality of openings 18, 19, 20 respectively, adjacent thereto, whereby the air is caused to flow upward in the direction of the arrow 2l and through themain passage and divides and flows through the smaller passages 18, 19, 20 and finds egress to the front of the heater, as indicated by the arrows 26, 27, 28.

The air which passes through the openings as 18, 19, 20 is preheated during its passage through 46 and more intensely heated during its passage through the smaller openings 18, 19, 20, by the heated walls of these smaller passages. vIn practice the. re-

fractory member is retained red hot by the electrieresistance coils as 22, 23, 24.

The species of refractory member hereinshown and described is made. the subject matter of our divisional application No. 20,036, filed April 2nd, 1922.

lThe appearance of the heater' from the front when in operation is that of ya glowing bank of coals through which a multiplicity of air passages as 18, 19,20 discharge into the room large volumes of .highly heated air as indicated by the arrows 26, 27, 28, thus heating the room by convection. f

Referring particularly to Fig. 3, wherein an alternate form of refractory member is shown, the assageways 30, 31 discharge highly heate air flowing from the passageway 46 and directed in front of the resistance coils 32, 33 instead of over them or against them as in the case illustrated in Fig. 2. The How of heated air through these smaller passages is indicated by the arrows 47, 48 and 49.

Either form 'of refractory member may be constructed of unit blocks and built up and doweled together or the entire structure vided, some of it passing up in the direction of the arrow 2l and passage 46 and a second stream of relatively cold air passing in the direction of the arrow 41 through the passageway 42, and finding egress through the upper portions as shown b the arrow 43, and there mingleswith the highly heated air coming through the refractory element as above described and is thus discharged into the room in large volumes.

It will thus be seen that the back form is protected from high heat while a maximum quantity .of most highly heated air is se-` cured from a given consumption of current acting through the resistance elements 4some of which are shown in the drawings as at 22, 23, 24 and at 32 and 33.

Our invention is directed articularly to the refractory member and t e air circulation passages, and wewish to be understood.

as claiming said invention whether embodied in a wall type of heater, or a floor type of heater not shown but wellv known and withvarious forms of electric heating resistances.

Reference is herein made to our co-pending application Serial No. 20,036, filed April 2, 1925, wherein are claimed other inventive steps shown in this case, but not claimed.

We claim:

l. In an electric heater, a refractory member, with an electric resistance mounted on said member, a diaphragm to the rear ofsaid member and forming therewith an air passage closed at the top and open at the bottom, a plurality of smaller ducts opening from said air passage and through said member and adapted to heat air currents passing therethrough and to discharge said currents in front of said members.

2. In an electric heater, a refractory member, with an electric resistance mounted on said member, a diaphragm to the rear of said member and formmgtherewith an air as- .sage closed at the top and open at the ottom, a plurality of smaller ducts opening from said air passage and through said member and adapted to heat air currents passing therethrough and to discharge said currents in front of said member in! combinatin with an enclosing casing having an open grille work s aced from and in front the member, a bach spaced from said diaphragm whereby air is adapted to circulate.

between the said back and the member.

, 3. In an electric heater, a refractory member, with an electric resistance mounted on said member, a diaphragm to the rear lof* open grille work s aced from and in front 10 said member and forming therewith an air the member, a bac spaced from said dia- )assage closed at the top and open at the phragm whereby air is adapted to circulate ottoni, a plurality of smaller ducts opening between the said back and the member and 5 from said air passage and through said a discharge passage for said last mentioned member` and adapted to heat air currents air above the member and-diaphragm and 15 passing therethrough and to discharge said through the grille. currents in front of said member in combi- ARTHUR KEMPSTON. nation with an enclosing casing having an GEORGE J. HENRY. 

